Artist Hetain Patel is a Bolton-born artist whose work has recently been shown in QUAD. He makes humorous films with high production values featuring superheroes. The Jump featured 17 of Patel’s British-Indian family members who watch the artist as he leaps into the air in his home-made Spider-man costume in a film shot in his grandmother’s home. His work Don’t Look at the Finger shows a man and woman at an African wedding ceremony jousting in several different ways, using sign language, kung fu and elaborate body gestures during combat. “I’m interested in how we read each other as human beings, whether it’s our gender, ethnicity, what we’re wearing. I’m interested in making interventions and transforming visually and physically those things that we read as identity.”

Dr Jo Twist (OBE) was previously Channel 4 Education Commissioning Editor where she commissioned Digital Emmy-winning Battlefront II, free to play browser and iOS games and social media projects. Jo was Multiplatform Commissioner for BBC Entertainment & Switch, BBC Three Multiplatform Channel Editor, and technology reporter for BBC News. She is Deputy Chair of the British Screen Advisory Council, London Tech Ambassador, BAFTA Games Committee member, and sits on a number of boards and advisory groups. In 2016 she was awarded an OBE for services to the creative industries and won the MCV 30 Women in Games award for Outstanding Contribution. She is a Vice President for games and accessibility charity, SpecialEffect and the government’s Sector Champion for Disabilities.

Hetain Patel said “QUAD is a forward thinking arts organization pushing the boundaries of what art and film can be, all the while keeping their work accessible to a wide audience. This strongly echoes my own passions as an artist, and so is an honour to be a new Patron, joining them as they celebrate their first decade.”

QUAD CEO Adam Buss added “Both Jo and Hetain match QUAD’s values of wanting to make art, film and digital media accessible to all. This allied to their influence, passion and talent make them ideal patrons for us as we move into our tenth year. We are very excited to be working with them both more in the future to help us inspire people from all communities to change their lives in positive ways.”

The two new Patrons have been announced as part of QUAD’s tenth birthday celebrations taking place through 2018. QUAD opened on 26th September 2018.